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Lactate kinetics in handcycling under various exercise modalities and their relationship to performance measures in able-bodied participants

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Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this study was to expand exercise testing in handcycling by (1) examining different approaches to determine lactate kinetics in handcycling under various exercise modalities and (2) identifying relationships between parameters of lactate kinetics and selected performance measures.

Methods

Twelve able-bodied nationally competitive triathletes performed a familiarisation, a sprint test, an incremental step test, and a continuous load trial at a power output corresponding to a lactate concentration (La) of 4 mmol l−1 (PO4) in a racing handcycle that was mounted on an ergometer. During the tests, La and heart rate (HR) were determined. As performance measures, maximal power output during the 15-s All-Out sprint test (POmax,AO15) and maximal power output during the incremental test (POmax,ST) were determined. As physiological parameters, coefficients of lactate kinetics, maximal lactate accumulation rate (\(\dot {V}\)Lamax), maximal La following the sprint test and incremental test (Lamax,AO15, Lamax,ST) and the increase in La within the last 20 min of the continuous trial (LaCrit,CT) were determined.

Results

Mean values of POmax,AO15 (545.6 ± 69.9 W), POmax,ST (131.3 ± 14.9 W), PO4 (86.73 ± 12.32 W), \(\dot {V}\)Lamax (0.45 ± 0.11 mmol l−1 s−1), Lamax,AO15 (6.64 ± 1.32 mmol l−1), Lamax,ST (9.64 ± 2.24 mmol l−1) and LaCrit,CT (0.74 ± 0.74 mmol l−1) were in accordance to literature. \(\dot {V}\)Lamax was positively correlated with Lamax,AO15 and POmax,AO15 and negatively correlated with POmax,ST. POmax,ST was negatively correlated with Lamax,AO15. PO4 was negatively correlated with Lamax,ST.

Conclusions

\(\dot {V}\)Lamax was identified as a promising parameter for exercise testing in handcycling that can be supplemented by other parameters describing lactate kinetics following a sprint test.

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Abbreviations

A :

Amplitude parameter describing post-exercise lactate kinetics of the 15-s All-Out test

ATP:

Adenosine triphosphate

BMI:

Body mass index (kg m− 2)

b ST :

Increase in power output with each step of the incremental step test (W 5 min− 1)

c 1 :

Linear coefficient of the quadratic polynomial for the incremental step test

c 2 :

Quadratic coefficient of the quadratic polynomial for the incremental step test

CSA:

Cross-sectional area

ESC:

European Society of Cardiology

H+ :

Proton (H+-Ion)

HC:

Handcycling

HIIT:

High-intensity interval training

HR:

Heart rate (min−1)

k 1 :

Velocity constant describing the exchange of lactate from the previously active muscles

k 2 :

Velocity constant describing the removal of lactate during passive recovery

La:

Lactate concentration (mmol·l−1)

La(0):

Lactate concentration at rest

La(PO):

Lactate concentration for a given power output

La(t):

Lactate concentration at a given time

LaCrit,CT :

Maximal increase in lactate concentration within the last 20 min of the continuous load test

Lamax,AO15 :

Maximal lactate concentration after the 15-s All-Out sprint trial

Lamax,CT :

Maximal lactate concentration within the continuous load test

Lamax,ST :

Maximal lactate concentration within the incremental step test

LT:

Lactate threshold

MCT:

Monocarboxylate transporter

MICT:

Moderate intensity continuous training

MLSS:

Maximal lactate steady state

MV:

Mean value

P :

Probability of committing a type I error

PCr:

Creatine phosphate

PFK:

Phosphofructokinase

PO:

Power output (W)

PO4 :

Power output equivalent to a lactate concentration of 4 mmol·l−1

POlast :

Power output within the last (unfinished) step of the incremental step test

POmax,AO15 :

Maximal power output within the 15-s All-Out test

POmax,ST :

Maximal power output within the incremental step test

r :

Correlation coefficient

R 2 :

Determination coefficient (%)

RPE:

Rate of perceived exertion

SCI:

Spinal cord injury

SD:

Standard deviation

t alac :

Period at the beginning of exercise for which no lactate formation is assumed (s)

t last :

Exercise duration within the last (unfinished) step of the incremental step test (s)

t ST :

Prescribed duration of each step during the incremental step test (5 min ≙ 300 s) (s)

TE:

Technical error (%)

\(\dot {V}\)Lamax :

Maximal lactate accumulation rate (lactic power) (mmol·l−1·s−1)

\(\dot {V}\)O2max:

Maximal oxygen consumption (aerobic power) (ml min−1 kg−1)

References

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank all participants who took part in this study for their patience and commitment. There were no funding sources for the present article.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Movement and Neurosciences, German Sport University Cologne, Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6, Cologne, 50933, Germany

    Oliver J. Quittmann, Thomas Abel, Sebastian Zeller, Tina Foitschik & Heiko K. Strüder

  2. European Research Group in Disability Sport (ERGiDS), Cologne, Germany

    Thomas Abel & Sebastian Zeller

Authors
  1. Oliver J. Quittmann
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  2. Thomas Abel
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  3. Sebastian Zeller
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  4. Tina Foitschik
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  5. Heiko K. Strüder
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Contributions

OJQ and TA conceived and designed research. OJQ conducted experiments. TA conducted medical background during experiments. OJQ contributed new analytical tools. OJQ analyzed data. OJQ wrote the manuscript. TA, TF and SZ reviewed the manuscript. All authors read and approved the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Oliver J. Quittmann.

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this article.

Additional information

Communicated by Guido Ferretti.

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Cite this article

Quittmann, O.J., Abel, T., Zeller, S. et al. Lactate kinetics in handcycling under various exercise modalities and their relationship to performance measures in able-bodied participants. Eur J Appl Physiol 118, 1493–1505 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-018-3879-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-018-3879-y

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